ayr Racecourse

Scotland's only Grade 1 track - Ayr hosts 34 fixtures per year on both the flat and over the jumps. Major meetings include the Scottish Grand National in April as well as the Ayr Gold Cup which takes place each September.

Overview

Flat

Jumps

Ayr, on the west coast of Scotland, is home to both flat turf and jumps racing across the year, hosting 34 race days. The flat season runs from late April to October and the highlight is the Ayr Gold Cup, a 6f sprint handicap in September. The jumps season runs from the end of October through to the two-day Scottish Grand National meeting in April, normally a week after the Grand National at Aintree. Only one horse, Red Rum, has ever won the two races in the same season. Ayr is Scotland's only Grade 1 track.

A 1m 4f left-handed galloping oval-shaped course with a few modest undulations in places. There is a slightly downhill turn into the half-mile home straight, and this can allow front runners to get an advantage as they swing into the home straight. The straight course has sprints over 6f and 5f and being the widest part of the course, it regularly holds 28 runner races on the straight course and you will often see the field split into two groups. The going is a key factor at Ayr, being on the West Coast of Scotland, there is plenty of rainfall and this can make the track one of the most gruelling in the country on heavy ground.

A left-handed oval-shaped circuit on the inside of the flat course, it is 1m 2f in length. A slightly undulating, galloping track, the hurdles course consists of 6 hurdles and can be testing in testing conditions where it pays to race handy. The chase course has nine fences in a circuit with a long gentle rise on the run-in after the last fence of 210 yards. As with the flat course, the weather is key here and over the winter months, Ayr can become a stamina test on the heavy ground. Form from Ayr often transfers well to Cheltenham.

Today's Market Movers

Doncaster 1.40 - ELDRITCH - 41%

Sandown 4.05 - HYPERFOCUS - 45%

Perth 5.25 - ANYWAYTHEWINDBLOWS - 33%

Doncaster 5.40 - FIRE JET - 45%

Chepstow 6.30 - BARNEY RUBBLE - 70%

Stat of the Day
- Ayr

22/04/2017

42%

Trainer Paul Nicholls has a 42% strike rate in the last two weeks – Check out his ride TOMMY SILVER in the 2.45pm here this afternoon